Columbia Hills from MER-A landing site PIA05200 br2

Husband Hill is one of the Columbia Hills in

Gusev crater Gusev is a crater on the planet Mars and is located at and is in the Aeolis quadrangle. The crater is about 166 kilometers in diameter and formed approximately three to four billion years ago. It was named after Russian astronomer Matvey Gusev ...

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

, which are close to the landing site of

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

's ''Spirit'' rover. It was named in honor of

Rick Husband Richard Douglas Husband (July 12, 1957 – February 1, 2003) was an American astronaut and fighter pilot. He traveled into space twice: as Pilot of STS-96 and Commander of STS-107. He and the rest of the crew of STS-107 were killed when ''Col ...

, the commander of the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' when it disintegrated upon

atmospheric reentry Atmospheric entry is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. There are two main types of atmospheric entry: ''uncontrolled entry'', such as the entr ...

(see Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster). In 2005, the ''Spirit'' rover, as part of its exploration of its landing site, slowly climbed to the top of Husband Hill. It reached the summit on August 21, 2005, and began its descent on September 25, 2005, after spending nearly two months examining the outcrops and views of the summit plateau before moving on. Named areas on the hill include the " Cumberland Ridge", where rocks with higher than normal

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...

content exist, and "El Dorado", a dark albedo feature on the south side. Husband Hill rises about 351 ft (107 m) above surrounding plains.

References

External links

Official Mars Rovers site

The summit of Husband Hill
(panoramic image) Hills on Mars Aeolis quadrangle {{crater-stub